Anyone who has visited Hungary will tell you that it is a country of many cultures. Hungary has been ruled by several important empires in the past, including the Romans, Ottomans, Soviets, Mongols, Magyars, and Czechs. Needless to say, the country’s history has been quite turbulent. And this has resulted in an abundance of museum-worthy artefacts and relics. Two lost wars, the Holocaust and decades of communism, as well as ancient historical events, have resulted in the accumulation of many museum-worthy materials. As a result many museums were established in Hungary. Hungary also has several art museums that display Hungarian and European art works.
10 best museums in Hungary
Here we have compiled a list of 10 best Hungary museums that you would love to visit on your Hungary trip.
1. Hungarian National Museum
It is the oldest museum in Hungary and also the most interesting museum in the city of Budapest. The museum was built during 1837 to 1847 and houses a collection of historical artifacts from the Árpád dynasty to the days of communism. The museum building itself is a massive neoclassical building. The museum tympanum is decorated with sculptural works of Raffaello Monti. At the present time, the museum houses more than one million objects that fully illustrate the history of Hungary. The museum’s main collection is displayed on the second level of the building, containing artefacts dating from the 10th century to the beginning of the Árpád dynasty.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1700 HUF, Children and Seniors – 800 HUF
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2. Hungarian Agricultural Museum
The Hungarian Agricultural Museum is located inside Vajdahunyad Castle and is the largest museum of its kind in all of Europe. The museum was built in the late 19th century and hosts both temporary and permanent exhibitions. Permanent exhibitions showcase agriculture, hunting practices, fishing, farming and wine making etc. The museum also displays the skeleton of the famous Hungarian race horse, Kincsem.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 5 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1000 HUF, Children and Seniors – 500 HUF
3. Koller Gallery
The Koller Gallery was founded in 1953 and the museum exhibits modern as well as contemporary Hungarian art, the Amerigo Tott monument and a small sculpture garden. The museum displays artworks from various Hungarian artists and many art exhibitions have been held at the museum over the years. The current gallery used to be the home of the famous sculptor Amerigo Tott and the museum has a small memorial room dedicated to the artist.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
4. Ethnographic Museum
The Ethnographic Museum was established in the year 1872 and since then it has been collecting, preserving and collecting artefacts belonging to the Hungarian, European and other world communities. The museum collects all kinds of objects, images, scriptures and textual materials, as well as audio recordings, which serve as a means of learning about the world. This museum is a place where cultures and generations meet.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: 2220 HUF
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5. Budapest History Museum
The Budapest History Museum is located inside the famous Royal Castle and is now dedicated to enlightening people about the history of the capital city. Budapest was formed by the union of three cities, Buda, Obuda and Pest. The museums display artefacts and remains from local excavations. The oldest remains displayed in the museum date back to approximately 40,000 years ago. Findings from new excavation tours continue to be added to the museum and the museum can be visited to see the medieval ruins and Castle Hill.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 2000 HUF, Students and Seniors – 1000 HUF
6. Ludwig Museum
The Ludwig Museum of Contemporary Art houses a collection of contemporary artworks by Hungarian artists as well as many other international artists. You can see artefacts displayed from around 50 years ago. The aim of the founders of this museum was to bring East and West together through art. 70 artworks donated by founders Peter and Irene Ludwig serve as the basis of the museum.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 8 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1600 HUF, children and seniors – 750 HUF
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7. Holocaust Memorial Center
A Jewish heritage museum, this memorial center pays tribute to all the victims of the Hungarian Genocide. The memorial center was inaugurated in 2004 and includes a museum, a synagogue, and a glass memorial wall with the names of 5,000,000 victims inscribed on its wall. The museum’s permanent exhibition displays the history of the genocide of the Jewish community in Hungary and many original personal belongings.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1400 HUF, Children and Seniors – 700 HUF
8. Hungarian National Gallery
The Hungarian National Gallery in Budapest hosts numerous exhibitions that tell the history and development of Hungarian art over the centuries. There is also a permanent collection that represents the last 500 years of art in Hungary and you can see Gothic wooden sculptures and altar pieces as well as many medieval and Renaissance stone works. The museum has been in existence since 1957 and is a great place to gather insight into the world of Hungarian art over the centuries.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1000 HUF, Children and Seniors – 800 HUF
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9. Museum of Fine Arts
Established in 1896 and opened in 1906, the Museum of Fine Arts in Hungary exhibits many visual artworks from all over Europe. You can see many paintings and sculptures of European origin and the main attraction of the museum is the permanent exhibition of the Equestrian Statue, which was created by Leonardo da Vinci himself. There are also many works of art from the 19th and 20th centuries and the museum is the second largest collector of Spanish art. There are many sculptures of Italian origin dating back to the 4th century as well as many from France, Germany, England and Denmark from the 13th century.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1600 HUF, Children and Seniors – 800 HUF
10. Hungarian Natural History Museum
The Hungarian Natural History Museum is home to many flora, fauna and minerals native to Hungary, including some from other parts of the world. The rocks you see near the entrance belong to different regions of Hungary and are arranged in the order of their formation. The permanent exhibition includes depictions of man and nature in Hungary over the centuries, the skeleton of a fin whale, treasures of the Carpathian Basin and plants and animals of the coral reefs. The museum is also very family-friendly and has won several ‘visitor-friendly’ and ‘family-friendly’ awards.
Place:Budapest, Hungary
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
entrance fees: Adults – 1600 HUF, Children and Seniors – 800 HUF
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Here you have a list of the 10 best museums in Hungary. Visit these museums on your Hungary trip and gain valuable insight into Hungarian life, art, culture and history while traveling across Europe with Tips Clear.
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